Is There a Portal in Every System in No Man’s Sky?
Yes, absolutely! Every major celestial body in No Man’s Sky, such as planets and moons that you can land on, contains one portal. This means that if you explore a star system with multiple planets and moons, you will find one portal on each of those celestial bodies. Portals are a crucial element of the game, offering players a unique way to travel and engage with the game’s vast universe.
Understanding Portals in No Man’s Sky
Portal Location and Discovery
Portals in No Man’s Sky are not explicitly marked on your galactic map. They are discovered semi-randomly during gameplay, though the game ensures their presence on every suitable celestial body. You can find them in a few key ways:
- Scanning from Space: While in your starship within a planetary system, you can use your scanner to look for planetary structures, including the location of the portal. This is a system-wide scan that reveals the portal on each planet and moon.
- Surface Exploration: Once you are on the surface of a planet, you can use your scanner while on foot. Look for a monolith structure. Interacting with the monolith will eventually reveal the location of the portal.
- Following Guidance: The game may also direct you towards a portal during certain missions or quest lines, particularly those related to the Atlas path and related quests.
How Portals Work
Once you discover a portal, activating it requires a specific process. You need to first charge the portal’s glyphs with resources. After the glyphs are charged, you can input a 12-glyph address to warp to a specific location. This makes portals a fantastic way to travel between systems, provided you have the correct address. The glyphs themselves are acquired by completing certain quests, or by finding and interacting with travelers on Space Stations. This method of travel allows players to move across large distances in the game, to share bases, and to uncover new discoveries made by other players.
Portal Glyphs and Addresses
Each portal is tied to a unique address represented by 12 glyphs. These glyphs provide coordinates within the No Man’s Sky universe. The number of combinations of glyphs is not as high as some believe. Given there are 16 unique glyphs, and 12 places for them to be in a sequence, there are in fact only 1,820 possible portal addresses. Once an address is input correctly, it will allow access to the specific planet or location on the planet tied to that address.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Portals and More
1. How many portals are in a solar system?
As a rule, there is one portal for every landable celestial body within a star system. This means a system with 3 planets and 2 moons will have 5 different portals.
2. Can you use a portal without glyphs?
No, you cannot use a portal without having obtained at least the necessary glyphs to activate it and input a 12-glyph address. Glyphs are collected by engaging with the Atlas questline, and by speaking to travelers on Space Stations.
3. Where can I find glyphs for portals?
Glyphs are acquired through interactions with travelers at space stations. After speaking with them at least twice, they will provide you with the location of a grave on a planet. Interacting with the grave will grant the user a glyph. Glyphs can also be acquired through progressing the Atlas questline.
4. What is the purpose of portals?
Portals serve as a means of fast travel to specific locations within the No Man’s Sky universe. They also can be a way to visit the planets and bases of other players. They enable users to bypass normal warping through the galaxy and thus allow quick access to specific and important locations.
5. What is the “Final Interface Portal?”
The “Final Interface Portal” refers to the portal found in the system where the final glyph is received through the Atlas Questline. It plays a key role in the game’s main storyline. It’s often used as a reference for players to find the portal linked to the questline.
6. Can you travel between galaxies using portals?
No, portals cannot be used to travel between galaxies. Portals only allow travel within the current galaxy. To travel to other galaxies, players must reach the center of the galaxy they are in, and then continue their journey through the galaxy.
7. How many ships can I own in NMS?
The maximum number of ships you can own in No Man’s Sky is 12. This gives you ample opportunity to have a collection of ships that fit your play style and preferences.
8. How many planets are there in NMS?
No Man’s Sky has over 18 quintillion planets, making it almost impossible to fully explore every corner of the game’s universe. The number of planets makes the exploration and discovery aspects of the game endless and exciting.
9. Can you explore underwater in No Man’s Sky?
Yes, No Man’s Sky allows you to explore underwater, with dedicated story content related to the depths, such as missions and underwater ruins that add an extra dimension to gameplay and exploration.
10. What happens if you fly into a black hole in No Man’s Sky?
Flying into a black hole will warp you to a distant system within the galaxy. There is a chance that it will damage the technologies installed in your general inventory of your ship, but the technology in your technology inventory is not affected.
11. Can you go back to the Euclid galaxy after leaving it?
Yes, you can return to the Euclid galaxy after having explored other galaxies. Your bases and progress within Euclid will remain, allowing you to return at any time.
12. Is there a “final” galaxy in No Man’s Sky?
Iousongola is the last galaxy in the No Man’s Sky universe. Reaching it means you have explored the vast expanse of the game’s universe.
13. What is the overall goal of No Man’s Sky?
The game’s overarching goal is to reach the center of the galaxy. Upon doing so, the player enters a new galaxy. The story also includes elements of uncovering the mysteries of the Atlas and the universe in general, allowing for a variety of goals.
14. Why are there no cities in No Man’s Sky?
The absence of cities in No Man’s Sky is often attributed to the presence of sentinels, who aggressively prevent large-scale resource gathering and ecosystem disruption, which are necessary for large city constructions.
15. How much of No Man’s Sky has been discovered?
Less than 1/1,000,000,000 of 1% of the game’s universe has been discovered. This underscores the massive scale of No Man’s Sky and ensures there is always something new and exciting to find. Only around 1% of the starter galaxy Euclid, has been explored.
By understanding the function and locations of portals, combined with knowledge about the other aspects of the game, players can more fully experience and enjoy the incredible depth and scale of No Man’s Sky.